First Gen sets aside $2B for projects

First Gen Corp. of the Lopez group has set aside close to $2 billion (roughly P82 billion) to put up natural gas and hydropower projects over the next five years, in anticipation of the country’s need for additional capacities.

In an interview, First Gen president Francis Giles Puno said that of the planned capital spending, $1.5 billion (about P61 billion) would be used for the proposed San Gabriel natural gas power project in Batangas, which was estimated to generate 1,450 megawatts within a five-year period. Another $400 million (about P16.4 billion) would go to various hydropower projects now in the pipeline.

“We will be mobilizing for the San Gabriel power and run-of-river hydro generating plants this year,” Puno told the Inquirer.

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For 2013 alone, First Gen has allocated up to $250 million (P10.25 billion) for capital spending, specifically for the gas and hydropower projects, according to Puno.

He earlier told the Inquirer that the proposed San Gabriel natural gas power project would be put up on the same site as its two gas facilities—the 1,000-MW Sta. Rita and 500-MW San Lorenzo gas plants.—Amy R. Remo